This invention relates generally to fasteners for attaching a panel to a structural support. More particularly, the present invention relates to fasteners for attaching an insulated wall panel to a structural member such as lumber or steel.
Insulated wall panels, which may typically be constructed from lumber facing substrates with an adhesively secured core of insulation, are commonly used in the construction of interior walls, roofs, ceilings and floors of residential, commercial and public structures. The insulated wall panels are typically attached to structural lumber with large common or spiral nails or standard roofing screws. It is common to also employ a washer with the conventional nails and standard screws because of the relatively small head diameters of the fasteners. While conventional screws are ordinarily slightly more difficult to install and require a greater installation time, they tend to have a higher resistance to pull-out than nails. Accordingly, conventional construction techniques ordinarily require more nails than screws for installing a given panel.